A Delightful Visit From The Dwarves
by Frodo's sister
Summary: Bilbo receives a surprise visit from some of the dwarves that he went to Erubor with, and they meet three year old Frodo. There is humor in it, and there is no slash or drunkeness. Rating is for safety. Constructive Critisism instead of flames please.
1. Chapter 1

A Delightful Visit From The Dwarves

Disclaimer: Tolkien owns Lord of the rings and New Line Cinema owns the movies; I don't.

Possibly AU:

 **Authors Notes and Warnings: There will be a very short spanking scene in this story. Bilbo spanks frodo because he does something that is dangerous. Bilbo does not spank Frodo a lot, and he has Frodo's parent's permission to do it. The puppet show that Frodo will see will not be too scary for children. The ages of the children are human ages, not dwarf or hobbit ages. There is also a little religion in it. Possible Hobbit and Simarillian spoilers.**

Bilbo was relaxing in his cushioned chair in the very large parlor of Bag end with a sleepy three year old Frodo on his lap and reading a fairy tale story about elves to him. Bilbo was exhausted from looking after him all day because Frodo was a very curious toddler filled with energy and Bilbo often had to use his own energy to rescue him from things he got into that he wasn't supposed to as well as cooking and doing his usual chores. He never thought that a small child would tire him out so much.

He looked towards the large round window on his right and saw the dark blue sky decorated with stars that twinkled like little lights and the full moon was brightening the sky a little. He also felt a cool breeze hit his cheeks because he had his round window opened slightly. He stared at the night sky for a few seconds with admiration, thanking Eru for creating the stars and the moon, and when he turned back to Frodo he saw that his little nephew was sleeping.

 _He must be worn out from running around all day,_ Bilbo thought. _I think he will get a goodnight sleep tonight._

He was about to get up and tuck Frodo to his guest room to tuck him in bed, when he heard someone knocking on the door. Bilbo got up and carefully placed the sleeping toddler on the chair and went to open the door. He hoped the knocking wouldn't wake Frodo up.

"I'm coming," said Bilbo while he was walking to the front door.

When Bilbo opened the door his eyes lit up and his mouth was opened in a delightful surprise. There standing in front of him were Bofer, Bifer, Ori, Nori, and Gloin. Bilbo and the dwarves stood silently for a few seconds; they were so overwhelmed with seeing other again that they couldn't say a single word.

All of a sudden Bofer broke the silence by hugging Bilbo and saying, "It is so great to see you again."

"It is great to see you too, Bofer" Bilbo said in return. "It is great to see all of you. I've not seen any of you for years and I missed you."

"We missed you too," said Gloin.

At that moment Bilbo was hugging all of the dwarves.

When they stopped hugging each other Bofer said, "We visited Balin and Dwalin in Moria, and have decided to drop by your hole for a visit before we continue on our travels."

"Come inside," said Bilbo.

The dwarves were entering the door with loud footsteps, chattering, and clanging of weapons which made Bilbo winced because he did not want his nephew to wake up.

"Please be quiet," he said with annoyance in his voice. "My little nephew is sleeping and I don't want him to wakeup.

They followed Bilbo quietly inside the house and saw sleeping on the chair and leaning towards the left an adorable toddler with hair the color of dark chocolate and with a slight smile on his face. The dwarves looked admiringly at him.

"He is so adorable," Nori said very quietly.

"He is," Gloin agreed. "He reminds me of Gimli when he was little."

"What is his name?" Bofer asked quietly.

"His name is Frodo."

"Make yourselves comfortable while I take him to his room," Bilbo said very quietly to them. "You can help yourselves to the food."

Bilbo carried Frodo down one of the long tunnels, to a guest room that was next to his own room and opened the door. He put the sleeping Frodo on the small arm chair before he pushed the blankets halfway down the bed. He lifted Frodo and placed him on a soft yet firm mattress and tucked the blankets over him. He kissed him goodnight gently on his forehead before he left the room; quietly closing the door behind him.

While he was halfway through the tunnel he smelt some food cooking. He also heard a loud crash which sounded like glass breaking on the floor. He cringed at the sound because he was afraid that it would wake his nephew. He walked back to Frodo's guest bedroom and opened the door to the room to check up on him, Frodo was as sound asleep as he was before. With a sigh of relief Bilbo closed the door and followed the noise to its source; the kitchen. Behind the kitchen door he heard the dwarves talking to each other.

When he opened the kitchen door he saw Bifer heating up potatoes, mushrooms, carrots, and beef. Ori was kneeling on the floor picking up the dishes and silverware that he dropped. To Bilbo's astonisment, none of the dishes or silverware were broken. The other dwarves were sitting at the table filled with kiwi's, apricots, bread, cheese with a large pitcher of water and a bottle of wine in the middle.

"We're hungry," Nori said just before he picked up a piece of bread and placed it in his mouth.

Bilbo looked at him fondly with an expression that showed that he wasn't surprised at the statement.

Bofur who was sitting next to Nori helped himself to some cheese. Bilbo smiled fondly at them, and then he walked over to where Ori was and helped him pick up the dishes. They placed some of them on the table and the others back inside the cupboard.

Bilbo went over to where Ori was and helped him picked up the dishes and silverware.

"I opened the cupboards to take out the plates, forks, and knives, but they slipped out of hands and crashed onto the floor," Ori said while he placed some of the dishes back in the cupboard.

Bilbo also placed some of the dishes in back on the cupboard and the rest he placed on the table in front of the dwarves who each had a drinking glass and a wine glass in front of them. Ori placed the silverware next to the plates before he put the rest away with Bilbo's help.

"Thank you, Bilbo," Ori said tiredly before they joined the others at the table.

"They finally defeated the orcs and reclaimed Khazad-dum," said Gloin who took a bite out of his cheese. "It was a long hard battle, and many dwarves have lost their lives."

"But most of them survived, and Balin was made Lord of Khazad-dum," Nori added before he sipped some wine.

"Khazad-dum?" Bilbo asked, not understanding the word. He sliced a piece of melon and began to eat it.

"It's dwarvish for Moria," said Ori who was stirring the mushrooms.

"We had a big celebration afterwards," said Bofer. "Hundreds of dwarves were celebrating. We had a large feast of beef, venison, carrots, mushrooms, potatoes, roast chicken, etc. Some of the dwarves did not celebrate with us because they were still mourning over their families, but the rest of us were singing and dancing to the music that some of the dwarves played on the horns, drums, and other musical instruments. We were happy because not only did we defeat the orcs, but we really defeated them. There were a lot more dead orcs then there were dead dwarves." Bofer drank some of the water to wet his dry throat.

"Aul and the other valar must have helped us," said Gloin. "I don't think we could have defeated them this well by ourselves."

Bilbo and the other dwarves nodded their heads in agreement.

"But how can you celebrate; didn't you suffer loss too?" Bilbo asked.

"We did," said Ori. "But we were happy that we got Khazadum back. Plus we did not celebrate for until a few weeks later out of respect for the dead. We were both happy and sad."

"You could say that it was bittersweet celebration," said Nori.

"Who is Frodo?" Ori asked Bilbo while the others looked at Bilbo curiously.

"He's my nephew, well actually my cousin a few time removed, but there is such a huge age difference between us that it is better that he called me uncle. I'm babysitting him for a few days because his parents, Drogo and Primula are celebrating their wedding anniversary."

"Where did they go to celebrate it?" Bofer asked curiously before he helped himself to more bread.

"They went boating on brandywine River," Bilbo answered him before he took another bite out of his piece of melon.

"The water is awfully cold at this time of the year," objected Bofer. "It is too cold to go swimming."

"They are not going swimming," said Bilbo who wondered why Bofer would ask that question. "I hope the waters are calm because I don't want their boat to tip over."

"The waters should be calm because there are no clouds in the sky and there is hardly any breeze," said Gloin.

Bifer gestured in agreement before he ate some bread.

"I hope you are right," Bilbo said a bit doubtfully.

By that time Ori and Nori were serving food to everybody because supper was ready.

Bilbo and the dwarves were continuing to help themselves to the food while talking and laughing with each other.

Later on Bilbo and the dwarves were relaxing in the parlor drinking tea and conversing with each other. The fire from the fireplace added warmth to the room.

"Dali is getting married to Melli, this summer," said Nori. "I'm looking forward to the wedding; it will be an unforgettable event. They are going to have a feast filled with the most delicious venison, and beef, as well as cakes, and truffles. There will be lots of dancing and entertaining."

"There will also be lots of dwarves from the Iron Hills," said Ori. "I'm looking forward to seeing Dain again.

"I hope I see Olin and Dila and their son there too," said Gloin who blinked his eyes.

"Who are Dali and Melli?" Bilbo asked before he sipped his tea.

"They are friends of ours," Bofer answered. Dali's mother is one of my mother's best friends, and Melli is a distant cousin of ours. She used to live in Iron Hills."

"We are all looking forward to the wedding," Gloin said.

"How did they meet each other?" Bilbo asked.

"Melli and her relatives were visiting us from the Iron Hills a few years ago, and when she met Dali they became good friends and soon he was beginning to court her," Gloin answered. "She stayed with the few relatives who did not return to the Iron Hills."

"We dwarves hardly have weddings, because most of us don't get married," said Nori. "But I always have fun at them."

"When they occur," Ori finished for him.

What is going on in the shire?" Bofer asked Bilbo.

"We are going to have our yearly spring fair at the other end of Hobbiton, and I am looking forward to going there" said Bilbo. "There will be all sorts of vegetables, flowers, and fruits, as well as games and contests including the pie baking and wheel barrow races. Why don't you come with me to the fair? It will be lots of fun. I'm going to take Frodo there."

"You told me that Gandalf does fireworks," said Nori when we were in Lake Town.

"I don't think he's going to show fireworks this time," said Bilbo. "He just visited me a few weeks ago, and he told me he had important business in the south. It would be nice *yawn* though because he made the best fireworks I have ever seen, and all of the hobbits enjoyed them." The Sackville-Baggins and the Greenhomes faces flashed in his mind. He remembered how they sneered and made snide remarks about Gandalf's fire works. "Well *yawn* almost all of the hobbits."

"I'm getting tired. Frodo *yawn* had me up since ear *yawn* ly this morning and I am too sleepy to *yawn* stay awake any longer *yawn*. Goodnight."

Bilbo disappeared through one of the tunnels and the dwarves continued to converse with each other.

Early the next morning before the sun began to rise. Frodo was wide awake and ready to play. He toddled over to his uncle's room and reached up for the door handle and opened the door. He saw that his uncle was still in bed fast asleep. Frodo could not believe that his uncle was still sleeping at this time of the day. He jumped on Bilbo's bed climbed on top of Bilbo and began to shake him awake.

"Uncle Bibo!" Wake up! Wake up! It's time to pway!" Frodo said excitedly.

Bilbo began to moan while Frodo was shaking him until he woke up. The first thing Bilbo saw were the bright blue eyes of his nephew staring at him. The second thing he saw that the light of the moon was still shining through the window and that it was still dark outside.

"Come on Unca Bibo, time go get up. It's time to pway."

"No it isn't," said Bilbo who could hardly keep his eyes open.

"It's still dark outside. The sun hasn't even woken up yet. Go back to sleep."

"It's time fo the sun to wake up too," Frodo argued.

"Please go back to sleep," Bilbo said groggily.

"No wana sweep. Want to pway.'

Bilbo moaned then slowly closed his eyes again.

"Come on Unca Bibo, don't cwose ya eyes," Frodo said while shaking his uncle again.

At that moment Bofer saw through the open door an energetic toddler trying to wake up the exhausted Bilbo. He decided to intervene.

He walked over and said to them and said to Bilbo, "would you like me to take care of him so that you can get some sleep?"

"I would appreciate that Bofer; I can hardly keep my eyes open," said Bilbo who's eye lids were only half way up.

"Come on, let's allow your uncle to sleep," Bofer said to Frodo while he lifted him off the bed and placed him on the floor.

"Thank you Bofer."

"WI you pway wit me, Bofa?" Frodo asked while Bofa took his hand and they walked out of the room together.

Frodo began to run towards his room.

"Come on Bofa," he said trying to pull at his hand. "I got some toys in my woom."

Bofer let go of Frodo's hand and followed him into his guest bedroom where he had all kinds of toys including stuffed animals, and horses and buggies. His parents packed a lot of toys for him.

"I wana pway in te pawo. Hep me cawy my toys in teah," said Frodo while he picked up a few stuffed animals in his arms.

"What would you like me to carry?" asked Bofer.

"The hoses and the buggies."

Bofer picked up three of the horse and buggy set and followed Frodo out of the room. They walked through the tunnel until they came to the parlor. Bofer opened the parlor door and as soon as they entered the room they dropped the toys on the floor before they sat down on the floor and began to play with them.

Frodo took his stuffed bear and pretended to make it dance while he was making growling noise.

"What can I play with?" Bofer asked the toddler.

"You can pway wit my owiphant. His name is Tump (Stump).

"What is your bear's name," Bofer asked Frodo.

"Bouncy," Frodo answered.

"Now you haf ta make owiphant sounds as you mov Tump."

Bofer began to make oliphant sounds while he was moving stump at the same time Frodo was continuing to make Bouncy growl and dance. A few minutes later Bofa prentended to make Stump charge Bouncy, and when Frodo saw Stump charging Bouncy he made Bouncy jump on the bear. Bofer and Frodo made the stuffed animals wrestle with each other.

Bofer was having a lot of fun playing with Frodo. He saw how happy the child was by his bright eyes and his laughter. Bofer has always been good with kids. He used to play with Fili and Kili when they were children as well as Gimli, and he made plenty of toys for them. He also made lots of toys for children in human villages.

"Wook, Bofa, Bouncy, can jump vewy high."

Frodo lifted the stuffed bear over his head before he bounced it on the floor, and Bofer did the same thing except that he made oliphant jump higher and harder then Frodo's bear.

"Wow!" said Frodo.

"Wet's pway wit the hoses and buggies," he said while dropped his stuffed bear.

Frodo and Bofer began to move the horses and buggies around.

"Look at me," Bofer said to Frodo while he pretended to have his horse and buggy jump over a huge fence. "My horse jumped over a fence."

Frodo repeated Bofer's action and said, "Mine jumped over a mountain."

At that moment, Gloin entered the parlor and saw Bofer playing with the toddler.

"I see that I'm not the only one up early this morning," said Gloin who looked at the sun that was now showing its rays in through the large window.

"Frodo was up before sunrise, and he tried to wake up Bilbo so that Bilbo can play with him, but I saw how tired Bilbo was so I decided to play with this little lad and let his uncle sleep."

"I'm not a wittle wad; I'm a big wad," the one foot Frodo said proudly.

"Frodo, this is Gloin," said Bofer.

"Gwoin?" Frodo repeated questioningly.

"Yes, Gloin," said Gloin.

"Wana pway wit us, Gwoin?"

"What would you like me to play with?

"We gonna have a hose and buggy wace; you can pway wit tat hose and buggy," Frodo answered while pointing to the smaller hrose and buggy set.

Gloin picked up the horse and buggy and placed it with the other horses and buggies.

"We wace towads tat tuffed bunny. The fist one to weach the bunny wins. On ya mak! Get set! Go!"

Frodo, Bofer and Gloin were racing their horses and buggies towards the stuffed bunny. Bofer and Gloin moved their horses and buggies slowly so that Frodo could reach the bunny first. When he did, he dropped his horse and buggy and jumped up and down excitedly.

"I won! "I won!" he yelled.

"Shush," said Gloin. "Others might still be sleeping."

"No we're not," said Nori who entered the room. "Breakfast is ready."

"Come on Frodo," said Bofer. "It's time to have some breakfast."

"We pway afta?"

"Yes, we will play," said Bofer.

To Be Continued


	2. Chapter 2

A Delightful Visit From The Dwarves

Disclaimer Author's Notes and Warnings: See Page one

Bilbo was sleeping deeply in his bed. He was so tired from taking care of his energetic and mischievous nephew yesterday that he slept two hours passed sunrise. He woke again slowly. At first he was groggy, but a few seconds later he was wide awake and felt refreshed. He combed his hair, put on his robe and followed the smell of eggs and bacon that were coming to him from the kitchen.

The scent became stronger while he was walking down the tunnel until he came to the kitchen.

When Bilbo entered the kitchen he saw the dwarves sitting at the table eating bacon, eggs, and toast and drinking grape juice. Frodo was sitting next to Bofer.

"Good morning, Bilbo," said Bofer. "I see you're finally up."

"We have breakfast ready for you," said Nori while he put Bilbo's plate which consisted of two eggs, two bacons, and a slice of toast in front of Bilbo's chair.

Bilbo sat down and poured some grape juice in his glass. Then he plunged his fork into one of the eggs and took a bite out of it. He put it into his mouth and savored the taste of the fried egg that felt so light and fluffy that it seemed to almost melting his mouth.

"This is delicious," he told them.

"The bacon is delicious too," said Ori before he took another bite out of it. "I love how crisp it is."

"Why do you have hea gwoing on ya faces?" Frodo asked curiously before he ate a piece of his buttered toast.

The dwarves laughed slightly at the curious child's question.

"All of the dwarves have beards?" Bilbo answered before he took another bite out of his eggs.

"Why?" Frodo asked not understanding the answer Bilbo gave him.

"It makes us look majestic," answered Gloin before he ate another piece of bacon.

"What majetic?" Frodo asked.

"Important," Gloin answered him.

"Wi I gwo, a bead?" Frodo asked.

"No, Frodo, hobbits never grow beards," Bilbo answered him.

"It also makes us look rough," Nori said.

"Wike Bouncy?"Frodo asked before he drank some of his grape juice.

"Like Bouncy," Gloin answered.

"Who's Bouncy?" Ori asked just before he began to eat his toast.

"He's my favowit bea."

"I used to have a stuffed bear when I was a little dwarvling; I slept with him every night," said Ori.

"He still does," said Nori while Ori hit him lightly over the head.

"I sweep with my bea evewy night too."

"How did you enjoy your sleep?" Gloin asked Bilbo before he drank some more juice.

"It was good," answered Bilbo. "Frodo tried to wake me up this morning, but Bofer took care of him for me so I could get the sleep that I needed. Now I'm wide awake and refreshed."

"Energetic enough to go dancing?" Nori asked with amusement in his voice.

"Well…" Bilbo ate another piece of his toast.

Frodo began to talk a mile a minute. "I wike pwayin in tis house. It is fun. I pwayed hide and seek, cwimbed the couches, and the dwapes, swung on wopes picked flowas, twied to catch butafwys and wabbits, and pwayed wit my toys including Bouncy, Fwuffy the bunny, Bwonie the tuffed dog…."

"You must have been very busy chasing after him all the time yesterday, Bilbo," said Nori stating the obvious. He ate some more of his toast.

Bilbo ate some more of his toast too.

Bilbo nodded his head. "I never realized that a small child could have this much energy," said Bilbo. "I had to keep running after him. He ran so fast that I was hardly able to keep up with him."

The hobbits and dwarves continued to talk and laugh with each other while eating their breakfast.

Two hours later everybody was outside in the backyard enjoying the fresh air. The dwarves were playing with Frodo while Bilbo was having a conversation with Hamfast who was pulling up the ripe potatoes which were at the right side of the yard.

"Can't catch me! Can't catch me!" said Ori who was being chased by his brother while he was running towards the lilac bush which was on the left side of the yard. "Squeak! Squeak!"

"Meow! Meow!" said Nori who was chasing after him.

They were playing a game called Cat and Mouse. This time Nori was the cat. Nori was chasing after Ori, but just as he was about to catch him, Ori made it to the "mouse hole" which was actually the lilac bush. Nori was disappointed that he missed his brother, but a second later he saw Bofer running across his path. Nori began to chase after Bofer who was squeaking all the while, but Nori caught him.

"The cat caught the Mouse!" Nori yelled while he caught Bofer around the waste. "I'm going to eat him."

"I caught a mouse and now I'm going to eat him!" Nori shouted while he pretended to take a bite out of Bofer.

"You're the cat now, Bofer," said Nori.

"Meow! I'm going to get you," said Bofer who was beginning to chase after Frodo because Frodo who was close by. "I'm going to eat you for lunch."

"Can't cat me! Can't cat me!" Frodo yelled while he ran as fast as could on his tiny legs. "Squeak! Squeak! Squeak!"

Bofer slowed his pace so that he wouldn't be able to catch Frodo too easily, but the toddler was fast for his age and was soon ten feet away from him.

"I see that the dwarves are having lots of fun playing with Frodo," Hamfast said while he used a weed puller to help him pull a large potato out of the ground.

"The dwarves are very fond of him," said Bilbo in agreement. "And so am I. He is a very charming and sweet child, but he is also lively and full of mischief. He keeps me on my toes."

"My Halfred is the same way," said Hamfast. "Yesterday, my Bell was giving him a bath, and he was fighting it because he did not like baths. She was chasing him down the tunnel until she caught him and then he was struggling while she put him in the tub and began to scrub him. She was worn out when she finished, and this morning she found him playing in a bucket of water that she was going to use to wash the kitchen floor with. She filled the bucket with water from the well in our yard and brought it to the kitchen. Then she went inside a closet and picked up box of soap, and as soon as she entered the kitchen again, to her dismayed she saw him playing in the bucket and splashing water on the floor. She also saw Hamson playing with his toys and not taking any notice of his brother. 'I should have known better than to ask our six year old to take watch our two year old,' she said to me."

"Taking care of children is hard," said Bilbo.

"It is Hamfast agreed especially if you're not used to it, but they are worth it. We had to child proof the house to keep Halfred away from the harmful items."

"I did too; I put the items that I did not want Frodo to touch out of his reach."

A second later Bifer was running past them towards the apple tree while Frodo was chasing after him and meowing.

"My Hamson used to get into everything to, but he has grown out of it," said Hamfast. "We still have to watch him, though not as closely as when he was a toddler and we certainly did not have to chase after him every five minutes because he is old enough now to know to stay away from certain things."

Next door Dodo and Tulip Greenhome and their guest Lobelia were gossiping nastily about the Baggins and the dwarves while they were watching them from the other side of the fence.

"Look at those dwarves," Tulip sneered. "I can't believe Bilbo would have them as guests in his home. Any hobbit with sense wouldn't have such guests."

"Bilbo doesn't have any sense," said Dodo with a frown on his face. "He welcomes outsiders including dwarves and Gandalf the wizard. He is as unnatural a hobbit as he can get; going on adventures."

"And his nephew is just as unnatural as Bilbo," Lobelia said nastily while looking at the toddler with disapproval. "His mother is actually a Brandybuck."

"How shocking!" Tulip said with a look of horror on her face. "I certainly will not allow my child to play with him." She patted her stomach lightly where her child was residing in.

"Otho and I will not allow our Lotho to play with him either, or to associate with Bilbo. The last thing he needs are wild ideas about going on adventures and visiting elves."

"I agree with you," said Dodo.

"And look at Bilbo talking to his servant and treating him like an equal," Lobelia said haughtily. "We would never talk to our servants unless it was to give them orders."

"We would never associate with them either," Dodo agreed.

Gloin, who was being chased by Bifer, heard them gossiping and became a little angry.

"You have no right to talk about Bilbo and his nephew like that. Bilbo is a good hobbit who helped us get our home back."

"That is right," Nori agreed who was just as angry.

Biffer also gestured his agreement with the two dwarves.

"Ignore them," Bilbo said to them. "They obviously have nothing better to do."

"I wish you have never returned from your journey!" Lobelia shouted angrily to Bilbo. "This house would belong to us now if it weren't for you."

"They would be better neighbors because they are proper hobbits and not unnatural like you and Frodo," said Tulip just before she walked back inside her hole with Dodo and Lobelia following her.

"I'm glad that you are living in Bag end instead of the Sackville Baggins," said Hamfast while he was brushing dirt off a potato. "You are a much better neighbor than those Sackville Baggins or those Greenhomes. You are a pleasant hobbit and have good manners."

"Thank you Hamfast," said Bilbo.

Bilbo decided that it was time for lunch, so he said to Hamfast. "I'm going to go inside now and make lunch now. Would you care to join us?"

Hamfast looked up from his gardening. "No thank you, Mr. Bilbo, my Bell is making savory mushroom soup and sandwiches for lunch, and I'm looking forward to eat them.

Bilbo nodded his head at Hamfast while Hamfast resumed picking the potatoes out the ground.

"Bofer, Bifer, Nori, Ori, and Gloin, I'm going to make lunch now," said Bilbo.

"Did you say lunch?" Nori asked.

"Yes, come…."

Zoom!

Before he was able to say another word all of the dwarves ran faster than hares to the hole."

And I thought, that Frodo was fast," Bilbo thought.

Frodo was still playing on the lawn. He was chasing a monarch butterfly trying to catch it with his hands, but it always seemed to be out of his reach. The butterfly was over a flower garden that was located in the middle of the yard which included lilies, marigolds, and daffodils. The butterfly landed on a daffodil, but as soon as frodo tried to grab it with his chubby hands it flew out of his reach again causing him to pout.

Bilbo walked up to Frodo.

"Come on Frodo, it is time for lunch."

"I no wan wunch, I wanna pway," said Frodo with a pouting look on his face.

"No Frodo, you can play again after you eat your lunch."

"I wanna pway; I no wanna eat now."

"But if you don't eat you won't grow to be big and strong your," Bilbo objected.

"But I having wots of fun pwaying; no wanna top now," he said.

Bilbo saw that his face was beginning to turn red with anger and his eyes were beginning to be filled with tears. Frodo was about to have a temper tantrum, but Bilbo wasn't going to give in to it.

He said with a firm tone, "No, Frodo, you are not going to play now; you are going to eat lunch with us. So come on."

At that moment Frodo's face became redder and the tears that were in his eyes began to leak out. He dropped to the ground and began to hit and kick with his feet.

"No! No! No! I no wanna eat! I wanna pway! I wanna pway!"

Bilbo did not like to watch Frodo having a temper tantrum, and he was tempted to give in, but he held his ground, because he knew that giving in to a child and spoiling him, will do no good for the child especially when the child grows older.

So he watched him for a few seconds hoping that Frodo would tire out, but Frodo didn't stop in fact, he was hitting and kicking the grass, faster than before, while screaming loudly.

Bilbo was getting tired of this, so he said with a firm tone to Frodo. "We are going to eat lunch now, and if you don't come I am going to pick you up and carry you to the kitchen. If I have to carry you, you can stay in your room for the rest of the day and forget about playing."

He did not want to carry Frodo inside the hole kicking and screaming, because he wanted lunch time to be pleasant for everybody but if Frodo didn't stop in a few seconds he would have no choice. Luckily, he did not have to do that. Frodo, who didn't want to spend the rest of the day in his room, calmed down and stood up.

"I have wunch now," he said quietly.

Bilbo took Frodo's hand and walked him inside. The Baggins and the dwarves had a nice lunch of potato and beef stew, and the dwarves helped Bilbo clean up afterwards.

An hour later Bilbo was siting in his chair in the parlor reading one of his favorite books., Bifer, Ori, Nori, and Gloin were talking to each about different things, Bofer was carving toy animals for Frodo out of wood, and Frodo was playing with his toys that are on the floor.

"Gimli and I visited my brother last month; it took us a week to get to the new caves that he and the other dwarves discovered a few years ago. On our way down we encountered some orcs and fought them. They put up a good fight, but we defeated them. Gimli killed three of them."

"Your son is a good fighter," said Nori.

"He is," Gloin agreed. "He wanted to travel to Erubor with us, but I wouldn't let him because he was only 12 years old."

Dwarvlings around 12 fought in battles before," said Ori.

"Only when the need is dire, or there is a shortage of soldiers and other adult dwarves, but for the most part we do not let them fight," said Gloin.

"Gloin is right," said Bofer who looked up from his carving.

Bifer also gestured that he agreed with Gloin.

"How is your carving coming along?" Nori asked.

Bofer picked up a toy cat and a toy horse as well as the toy he was currently working on which looked like the top half of an oliphant.

"That is excellent work," said Gloin.

"It is," Nori agreed.

At that moment Frodo who was quietly playing with his toys for the last ten minutes got up and began to run to the kitchen with Bouncy in his small right hand. Bofer dropped the toy oliphant he was carving and began to chase after Frodo with Bifer following behind him. Bilbo who was involved in the story about Luthien and Beren also noticed it. He dropped his book and ran after Frodo.

Frodo opened the kitchen door and entered the kitchen. He dragged a chair to the counter and climbed on it. He tried to reach the cookie jar that was in the top cabinet by standing on his toes and stretching his arm towards it, but the cookie jar was way in the back out of his reach. He knocked down some plates which fell on the floor with a crash, and his foot began to slip. At that moment Bilbo and the two dwarves entered the kitchen and were alarmed by what they saw. Bilbo pushed the two dwarves out of his way and ran towards Frodo ignoring the broken plates on the floor. He caught Frodo who almost fell on the kitchen floor and spanked his bottom. Frodo began to wail.

Bilbo looked at frodo kindly and said to him, "I didn't want to do that, but you could have gotten hurt. It is dangerous to climb counters. "Promise me that you will never climb them again."

"I pwomise."

"Good," Bilbo said while he wiped Frodo's tears. "Now let's go inside the parlor and you can play with your toys again."

"I wike pwaying with toys," Frodo said while he was beginning to cheer up.

Bofer and Bifer cleaned up the broken dishes while Bilbo carried him back to the parlor.

He placed him on the floor and said; "now be a good boy and play with your toys."

Frodo took one of his horses and buggies and began to move it around.

"So what did you do while you visited your brother?" Ori asked.

"My brother welcomed us with a great feast of roast beef, venison, and potatoes, because he hasn't seen us for years. We were so happy to see each other that we were celebrating. I visited the inside of the cave and the carvings they did on the walls were exquisite, and the jewels they extracted were beautiful. I have never seen such a wide variety of gems before."

"Were there mithril there?" Ori asked.

"There wasn't," said Gloin. "But there were diamonds, emeralds, rubies, sapphires, etc."

"They are beautiful, but mithril is the best mineral that we have ever extracted," said Nori.

"That is true," said Gloin. "But I cannot deny the beauty of other gems."

"Bili and his wife Nala are expecting a child soon," said Ori. "I wonder what it is."

"Bili wants a boy and Nala wants a girl," Nori answered.

"Whatever the dwarvling is I know that they are looking forward to holding him or her in their arms. They are so excited about the baby that they talk about it all the time," said Ori.

"I also know that Dodi is also looking forward to his first grandchild," said Bofer who just returned from the kitchen and resumed carving a toy oliphant.

"It is sad that there are hardly any dwarvlings anymore," said Gloin. "Our race is dwindling like the elves," and someday we will no longer be in middle earth."

"I don't like to think of that," said Nori.

Frodo put his stuffed squirrel on top of his horse and buggy, and said "wook evawybody"

Everybody stopped what they were doing and looked at Frodo who had put his stuffed squirrel on top of one of the buggies.

"I giving nutty a wide," Frodo said while he began to move the horse and buggy around again.

"It looks like Nutty is having fun," Bofer said.

"He wikes going on a buggy wide."

"Where is Nutty going?"Bilbo asked.

"He's goin to visit the ewen pwincess," in ef wand," Frodo answered.

The dwarves frowned when Frodo mentioned elves because they were not very fond of them, but Bilbo smiled and said, "have fun with your adventure."

"I wana have adventas wike you when I gwo up," said Frodo.

"What story are you reading, Bilbo?" Gloin asked.

Bilbo looked up from his book. "I'm reading about Luthien and Beren."

The dwarves continued to talk to each other, while Frodo continued to play with his toys.

Five minutes later, Frodo began to run towards one of the tunnels. Bilbo dropped his book again and began to follow the mischievous toddler with Nori and Ori following him.

"He's heading for our rooms," Nori said in alarm while he was chasing Frodo.

Frodo entered opened the door to Nori's guest room and entered it. Bilbo and the two dwarves entered it a minute later. To Nori's horror he saw that two of his dwawers were opened and his breeches and shirts were all over the floor and on his bed. Then he saw Frodo wearing one of his shirts which fit him like a dress and was bouncing up and down on his bed making it squeak.

"My room is a mess!" Nori cried in horror while Ori laughed. Nori glared at him.

Bilbo ran to Frodo and picked him up off the bed, and said to him, "no Frodo you must not jump on beds."

"But it's fun," said Frodo while Bilbo was pulling Nori's shirt off him.

"We are going back to the parlor and you can play quietly with your toys again."

"But I wanna wun awound, Unca Bibo. No wanna sit stiw"

"Maybe you should take him outside again, so he can run use up his energy," said Nori who was folding one of his shirts.

"Do you want to go outside and play?" Bilbo asked him.

Frodo nodded his head. "I wanna pway wit my baw."

He took Frodo's hand and said, "Let's go get your ball and play outside with it.

To be continued


	3. Chapter 3

A Delightful Visit From The Dwarves

Disclaimer Author's Notes and Warnings: See page one.

Bilbo and Frodo walked to Frodo's guest room and retrieved Frodo's ball. Then they walked out into the back yard, and as soon as they were outside again, Frodo ran to Hamfast who was now weeding the carrot patch.

"Hi Mita Hamfas?"

"Hello there, Mr. Frodo lad," Hamfast said to him with a warm smile. "How are you on this fine day?"

"I fine. What ah you doin?"

"I'm weeding the carrot patch," Hamfast answered while he tried to pull a very tough weed out of the ground with both his hands.

"What is weeding?"

Hamfast was unable to pull the very stubborn weed so he pushed a weed puller in the dirt towards the roots to help loosen it.

"It means pulling up plants that hurt flowers, vegetables, and fruits."

He gave it a really strong tug and was finally able to pull the whole weed out.

"Bad weed," Frodo said to it before Hamfast tossed it in a bucket.

Bilbo stood nearby looking amused while Frodo chatted with Hamfast.

"Do you have chiwdwin?" Frodo asked.

"I have two, Hamson, and Halfred."

"Can I pway wit tem?"

"Hamson is visiting the Cotton family, and Halfred is taking his nap right now. Perhaps you can play with them tomorrow."

"I pway wit my baw now Mita Hamfas"

Frodo began to run around on the grass, throwing the ball and catching it (sometimes he missed) while Bilbo was watching him. He nodded to Hamfast while Hamfast continued to pull weeds from the carrot patch.

"Wook, Unca Bibo, a bunny!" Frodo said excitedly while he spotted a brown rabbit eating grass near the apple tree that was at the far right side of the yard.

Before Bilbo was able to say anything, Frodo dropped the ball in his hands and began to run after the rabbit. The rabbit became alert and immediately hopped away.

"I wanna hug bunny, Unca Bibo; he's so cute," said Frodo with a pout on his face.

A second later, Frodo forgot the bunny and began to chase after another monarch butterfly trying to catch it but the butterfly flew high out of his reach.

"I twi to catch buttafwy Unca Bibo," said Frodo.

Another butterfly began to flutter around Frodo and he began to chase after it trying to catch it with his chubby hands but like before the monarch butterfly was always out of his reach. The butterfly flew over some blue bells that were growing near the fence on the left side of the yard. Frodo was trampling the blue bells while he was chasing trying to catch the butterfly. When the butterfly flew far away, Frodo gave up. He sat down and began to play with the dirt and picked up few of the blue bells. Bilbo frowned and his eyes took on a sad look because Frodo was ruining his blue bells. Hamfast, who was closer to the blue bells than Bilbo, walked over to Frodo, picked him up, and carried him out of there. He set him on the grass again and dusted the dirt off his clothes.

Bilbo picked up the ball that laid on the grass forgotten and walked over to Frodo and said, "here you go; just stay out of the gardens.

Frodo happily took his ball and began to play with it again.

"My Halfred also gets into flower gardens and vegetable patches," said Hamfast. "He was in the vegetable patches and flower gardens so much yesterday that My Bell had to bathe him twice."

Frodo was laughing while he was running around and throwing the ball and catching it again. When he missed, he ran after the ball.

When he saw Bilbo he threw the ball to his uncle and said to him, "wets pway catch!"

Bilbo picked up the ball and threw it gently to his nephew.

Bilbo and Frodo had fun playing catch for a few minutes when all the dwarves with the exception of Nori and Ori (they were still straightening up Nori's guest room) went outside and watched them play.

"Bofa, Bifa, Gwoin, pway wit us?" Frodo asked.

The dwarves joined in on the fun, and they played for ten minutes before Frodo dropped the ball again and began to run towards the radish and spinach patches which was at the right side of the yard. When he got there he sat down and began to play with the dirt there. Bilbo ran and picked him up off the radish and spinach patch, and dusted him off. Bilbo then carried him to a spot of dirt where no flowers or vegetables were growing and set him down again. Frodo happily began to dig up the dirt with his tiny hands.

"It looks like you're going to have to bathe him later on," said Hamfast said.

"Yes, it looks like I do," said Bilbo. "But playing in the dirt won't hurt him."

Frodo played with the dirt for five minutes before he began to run around again, chasing butterflies, rabbits, squirrels, cats, and birds, pulling flowers out of the ground and giving them to Bilbo, Hamfast, and the dwarves, running into the flower gardens vegetable patches, berry bushes, and throwing his ball everywhere. Frodo, Hamfast, and the dwarves had to pull him out of the flower gardens and vegetable patches every few minutes. Everybody hoped that Frodo would tire out by tea time, but when tea time came Frodo had just as much energy as he did before.

"It's tea time everybody," said Bilbo.

While Hamfast continued to pull weeds out of the carrot patch the others went inside and had tea with crumpets. Bilbo quickly bathed Frodo and changed his clothes before they joined the dwarves. Frodo was very cooperative this time not like yesterday where he kept trying to get out of the tub and ended up splashing water all over the floor. Twenty minutes later they were back in the parlor doing the same things as before. Bofer was finishing carving a hoof out of a cow with his carving knife.

When he finished he smoothed the sides with a sand paper then he looked at Frodo and said to him, "I made some new toys for you to play with."

Frodo dropped the toy puppy he was playing with and stood up with two open hands and eager anticipation in his eyes. Bofer placed in his hands toy animals which consisted of a toy oliphant, a toy cat, a toy horse, a toy cow, a toy moose, and a toy mouse.

"What do you say, Frodo?" Bilbo prompted him.

"Tank you Bofa."

"You're welcome," Bofer said.

Frodo sat down and began to play with his new toys while making animal sounds.

"What part of the story are you up to now, Bilbo?" Bofer asked Bilbo.

"Meow! Squeak Squeak!" Frodo said while he was making his new toy cat chase after his new toy mouse.

Bilbo looked up from his book and answered Bofer. "I'm up to the part where Beren is trying to steal the simarils from Morgoth."

"I remember when I was a teenager, I used to visit Dis, and played mining and other games with little Fili and Kili," said Ori. "They were very energetic, and their child like personalities always shined through. They were fun little dwarvlings."

"Moo! Moo! Moo!"

"What were your favorite games when you played with them?" Bofer asked.

"My favorite games were…"

"Get down!" Bilbo said to Frodo who was now climbing one of the curtains. The other dwarves watched while Bilbo ran to Frodo and picked him up off the curtains.

"No Frodo, you must not climb on he curtains," Bilbo said sternly while he placed him on the floor near his toys again. Now be a good boy and play with your toys again."

Frodo sat down to where his toys were and began to play with Bouncy.

"Growl! Growl!"

"Did he succeed taking the simarils from Morgoth?" Gloin asked Bilbo who sat down on his chair and picked up his book again.

"I don't know; I haven't gotten to that part yet, but I hope he does."

Ori continued to talk about his fun with Thorin's nephews to Bofer and the others. "My favorite game was the Mining Game, and they were Fili and Kili's favorite too. They used to love to pretend to mine for mithril, gold, and other gems and minerals. We also liked pretending to fight dragons with our toy axes," Ori answered Bofer."

"When did Thorin begin to teach his nephews how to use weapons?" Nori asked his brother."

"I think they were nine or ten years old," Ori answered.

"They were ten," Bofer said.

"Dwalin used to watch him train his nephews, and he did not allow them to train with real weapons until they were 12," said Gloin. "They were very good at using their axes and other weapons especially Kili who always outdid the other dwarvlings in contests. My Gimli was very good at the contests too."

"They were very fine fighters during the battle of the five armies," said Bilbo. "I watched them fight."

"They…" Gloin began

"Frodo no!" Bilbo shouted when Frodo began to run down one of the tunnels with Bouncy in his hand.

Bilbo put his book down and began to chase after Frodo while he was running into another room.

"I glad it's not my guest room again," said Nori.

Throughout the rest of the afternoon and into the evening, they were chasing after Frodo who was creating havoc in Bag end. He climbed furniture and curtains, took pots and pans out of the kitchen and banged them, bounced on beds, took shirts and pants (not underclothes) out of drawers and knick knacks that were on top, dressers and shelves, swung on drapery ropes, spilled ink on papers and made a house out of books he pulled out of the book case in Bilbo's study. He also went into the kitchen and was eating a vanilla cake that he found in one of the bottom cabinets.

 _I should have locked the bottom cabinets. Bilbo thought._ He was glad there was nothing dangerous in those cabinets.

By evening the dwarves and Bilbo were exhausted and the house looked as if it were struck by a tornado. Frodo was beginning to yawn.

Bilbo carried the finally exhausted toddler to his room. Frodo fell asleep on his way down there and tucked him in bed. He gave him a kiss on his forehead and walked out again and joined the dwarves.

Bilbo, Bofer, Bifer, Gloin, Nori, and Ori were relaxing on couches in the parlor while the fire from the fire place was warming up the room and making it cozy. They were glad that Frodo finally used up his energy and fell asleep because they were all worn out from having to chase after the mischievous toddler.

"I've never seen a child with so much energy before," said Nori who slumped on the couch. "And he is very fast; I could hardly keep up with him."

"A rabbit would have a hard time keeping up with him," said Ori. "I've never seen a child with so much energy before. He must have the energy of a dozen hobbits."

"More like ten dozen," Bilbo said.

"And I thought my Gimli was energetic," Gloin said who looked relieved that Frodo was finally sleeping.

"Your Gimli wasn't that bad, and neither were Fili and Kili; and I used to think no one was as energetic or mischievous as they were when they were toddlers," said Bofer.

Bifer agreed with Bofer by nodding his head.

"They do grow out of that," said Gloin.

"I'm glad of that," said Bilbo. "I can't see myself chasing after a tweenage Frodo all day long; I'll be thoroughly warned out before then."

"I wonder how his parents are able to handle him," Nori said with curiosity in his voice.

"Drogo and Primula can handle him a lot better than I can. They are used to taking care of him, and he doesn't wear them out nearly as much as he wears me out," Bilbo answered. "But as to how they do it; I have no idea."

"He'll grow out of that stage of getting into everything once toddler hood has ended but he still would need to be kept an eye on and to learn," said Nori.

"And he will need to be guided even during his tween years," Gimli added.

"The between years," said Nori.

"There was a time when Gimli was 14 and he wanted to go orc hunting, and I told him that he was too young to do that. He got upset and went anyway. It took us a few days to find him, and he nearly got killed by the orcs he was hunting."

"I can't wait for the spring fair tomorrow," Bilbo said. "There are going to be so many fun things to do down there like wheel barrel races, hay rides, wood chopping and pie baking contests. Not to mention different kinds of vegetables and fruits the farmers are going to sell. Why don't you come with us to the spring festival tomorrow?"

"Yes, I would like to come," said Ori, Nori, and Bofer at the same time Bifer nodded his head.

"I would like to come," said Gloin. "It sounds like a lot fun, and there will probably be lots of food to eat down there. We went to a dwarf fair last year and…"

At that moment Frodo walked into the room His half opened eyes had tears in them. He immediately climbed onto Bilbo's lap and his tears began to pour out of his eyes like waterfalls. Bilbo didn't say anything for a few seconds but wrapped his arms around Frodo letting him soak his shirt with his tears while he sobbed. Bilbo rubbed his back trying to calm him down.

Finally what seemed like an hour, though it was really less than a minute Frodo lifted his head out of his cousin's shoulder and said with a tearful voice, "I was awone in my woom wit monters, and they was chasing me. I twied to get out of my woom, but it was so big that I got wost and I couldn't find my way out. I called fo mommy and daddy, but they did not come. I was all awone and scawed."

Bilbo and the dwarves looked at him with sympathetic expressions on their faces.

Bilbo began to stroke Frodo's hair as way of comforting him, and said in a soothing tone. "It is only a nightmare, Frodo; the monsters can't hurt you."

"And you are not alone; you are safe with us," Gloin added.

"Whese my mommy and daddy? I miss my mommy and daddy," Frodo said sadly.

"Your mommy and daddy will be back the day after tomorrow.

"I want them now!"

"It's alright," Nori said trying to help Bilbo comfort his little nephew. "Your mommy and daddy will be back soon."

"I want them now," Frodo repeated while he began to cry again.

Bilbo began to talk about the fair with Frodo to help him get his mind off his parents.

"We are going to have lots of fun at the fair tomorrow," Bilbo said to Frodo. "There are going to be lots of fun things to see and do like puppet shows, children's races, hay rides, and pony rides, and you will get to visit animals."

"Wi teah be kittens to pway wit?" Frodo asked already forgetting about his nightmare and troubles. "I wove pwaying wit kittens."

"Yes, there will be as well as sheep, rabbits, and other animals."

*Yawn* "I can't wait *yawn* till I pay wit tem *yawn and the *yawn* wab-bits."

"Bilbo and the dwarves sang a lullaby for Frodo until Frodo closed his eyes and fell asleep again.

Bilbo picked up the sleeping Frodo in his arms and walked quietly back to the child's room and tucked him in bed again. He walked out of the room and returned to the parlor.

Early next morning the sun was pouring its rays through the round window in the kitchen where Bilbo was getting first breakfast ready. He cracked a bunch of eggs and poured them in to a greased frying pan making sure that there were no egg shells in there. He took an egg beater and mixed the egg whites and yolk. When he was finished he lit the coals underneath the stove to cook the eggs. He carefully placed some strips of bacon in a pan next to the one with the eggs in it and lit the coals underneath it too. While the eggs and bacon were cooking, he took some cheese and bread out of a cabinet and began to slice them; he was slicing them for about five minutes until he decided that it was time to check on the eggs and bacon. He saw that the eggs were hardening, but they were still runny towards the left and the back of the pan, and the bacons were sizzling, but they were still a little raw; so he went back to slicing the cheese and the bread. A few minutes later he checked on the eggs and bacon again. This time the eggs were ready, but the bacon still needed to be cooked because they didn't shrink or turned crisp yet. He put out the fire underneath the eggs to prevent the eggs from burning. He opened up the cabinet underneath the stove and placed another pan on the stove. He rubbed some butter on the pan to grease the pan and to make the toast taste buttery. He turned the stove on underneath it and began to place slices of bread in the pan.

In one of the bedrooms Gloin was dreaming that he and Thorin were talking with each other while mining for Mithril. The dream seemed real, yet not real.

"I'm so happy that you are alive again, Thorin. I miss you so much."

"I…" Thorin started to say, when the smell of eggs and bacon wafted through the air and pervaded his dreams.

"Is your sister cooking eggs and bacon this morning?" Gloin asked.

Thorin said nothing just continued to dig the mithril out of the rock with his pickaxe.

At that moment the smell of eggs and bacon became strong enough to wake Gloin up slowly. When he first woke up he was too groggy to be aware of anything for but when he became more awake a few seconds later he was aware that he was in a guest bedroom in Bag end. He also remembered that Thorin died years ago. His face expressed the sadness he felt in his heart for a moment, but when he smelled breakfast again he forgot about his sadness and began to feel hungry. He put on his robe and entered a tunnel.

He walked a few feet when he saw two doors open and Nori and Ori stepping out of their rooms too. The three dwarves began to walk to the kitchen together.

"I smell bacon and eggs," said Nori.

"I smell that too," said Ori. "And I can't wait to eat it."

"Whoever is making breakfast must be doing a good job of it because it smells delicious," said Gloin.

The scent of eggs and bacon became stronger as they continued to walk through the tunnel.

When they entered the kitchen they saw Bilbo standing in front of the stove watching the bacon and bread cook, and Bifer was sitting at the table eating toast and cheese that were on his plate, and drinking his fruit juice. Bilbo put a kettle of water on and lit the coal underneath the stove.

"Good morning, Nori, Ori, and Gloin," Bilbo said to them.

"Good morning Bilbo," they answered back. "Good morning Bifer."

Bifer gestured good morning back to them.

"Why don't you sit down; breakfast is ready." Bilbo said to them.

The three dwarves sat the table in front of the plates, silverware, cups, and glasses. In the middle of a table were three plates; one of them had lots of buttery toasts, another was filled with sliced cheese and the third had fried eggs on it. There was also a pitcher of fruit juice on the table.

A few seconds later, the bacon shrank and became crispy enough to be ready and the rest of the bread was toasted. He put out the fire underneath the bread and the bacon. He took the bacon and put them on the plate and placed them next to the eggs, and he put the rest of the toast on the plate where the other toasts were.

"Help yourselves to the food," Bilbo told them.

It wasn't necessary for Bilbo to tell them that, because Gloin was already eating his second piece of cheese while Nori was eating one of the toasts, and Ori and Bifer helped themselves to some eggs.

Steam was pouring out of the kettle on the stove and a few seconds later, Bilbo put out the fire underneath it.

"Help yourselves to some tea too," Bilbo said while he brought a cup that was filled with tea bags from one of the top cupboards and placed them on the table. "I have to go wake up frodo so that he will have a good first breakfast before we head out to the fair."

Bilbo began to walk towards the door, but he only took two steps when the door burst open with Frodo running inside followed by Bofer who was panting from chasing after him.

"It looks like it's not necessary for you to wake him up," Gloin said to Bilbo with amusement in his voice.

"You are right," Bilbo agreed.

"Good morning Bofer, Frodo," said Bilbo.

Bofer nodded his head in response.

"I wan eggs," Frodo shouted excitedly while he jumped up and down. "It smet so good, an I wan cheese too."

"Calm down Frodo," Bilbo said while he picked up the excited toddler and placed him on a chair.

Bilbo placed a cup in front of Frodo and poured some fruit juice in it; then he placed two eggs, two bacon, and a slice of toast with cheese on a plate and put the plate in front of the toddler.

As soon as the food and drink were in front of him he began to drink the juice fast, but Bilbo took the cup out of the toddler's hands and said to him, "drink slowly."

He handed the cup back to Frodo, and Frodo began to drink the juice slowly. After he drank some of his juice, he began to eat his breakfast like an animal. He grabbed some eggs and stuffed them into his mouth and tore a piece of toast and was about to eat it when Bilbo, who looked horrified at Frodo's atrocious table manners, said to him, "don't eat like that Frodo. Use your fork."

"But the dwaves ah eating that way," Frodo said.

Bilbo noticed that his nephew was copying the dwarves who were also eating breakfast like wild animals.

"Please," he said with annoyance in his voice to the dwarves. "We need to set an example for Frodo. I want him to learn to eat properly."

The dwarves did not understand why it was necessary to eat properly, but they complied with Bilbo's wishes.

"I had a dream last night," said Gloin. "I dreamed that Thorin Oakenshield was still alive, and that we were mining mithril together. We were talking and laughing with each other until the smell of eggs and bacon woke me up." He put a spoonful of sugar to sweeten the tea before he took a sip.

"I miss Thorin," said Ori, just before he ate another piece of bacon. "He was a good leader. He helped us find villages that accepted us, and he made sure that none of the men took advantage of us."

"I miss him too," said Bilbo. "He was a good friend." Bilbo's mind went to the time when they were traveling to Erebor. He remembered the conversations he had with Thorin in Lake Town about Hobbiton, and the time he freed him from the Mirkwood dungeons. He was glad that Thorin finally accepted him. Bilbo helped himself to some eggs.

"Who is Towin?" Frodo asked curiously. He took another bite out of his toast and cheese.

"He was our leader," said Bofer.

"And he would have been our king too, if he hadn't died," said Gloin who took another bite out his eggs and drank some more of his tea.

"Died?" Frodo asked not understanding the word.

"I don't think he understands what that means," Bilbo said to the dwarves hoping that they would drop the subject. He didn't want this table discussion to become depressing.

"Do you like the toys I made for you yesterday, Frodo?" Bofer asked changing the subject. He also did not want to talk about Thorin's death during first breakfast.

"I wike the toys vewy much. Make mo toys for Frodo?" Frodo asked before he drank some of his juice.

"Ori who was sitting next to him ruffled his head."

"I used to make toy animals for Fili and Kili when they were little dwarvlings too, and they loved to play with them. Fili especially liked to play with his toy leopard.

"Can I pway wit Fiwi and Kiwi?" he asked.

"Fili and Kili grew up a long time ago, and they are not here anymore," said Bofer, who ate another piece of his bacon.

The hobbits and the dwarves continued to eat first breakfast while talking to each other until breakfast was finished.

A few hours later, Bilbo, Frodo, and the dwarves arrived at the spring fair which was held at the other side of Hobbiton in front of the lake.

To Be Continued


	4. Chapter 4

A Delightful Visit From the Dwarves

Disclaimer and Authors Notes and Warnings: See page one.

The fair grounds were filled with hobbits buying and selling flowers, vegetables, pastries, etc. There were also many games and activities. The dwarves looked with amazement at the different activities that were going on because they have never seen a hobbit fair before. There was a hobbit lady towards the right selling flower wreathes, and a hobbit lady towards the left selling cherry and lemon pies. There was also a hobbit man who was playing the Hammer and Bell game. He swung the hammer and hit the object which went all the way up to the bell. Near him were a few hobbit lads tossing bean bags on blocks trying to get three in the row, and straight in front of the lads playing the Bean Bag Toss game were two ladies selling carrots, beets, squash, and other vegetables. There were many couples walking around with their arms linked together, and mothers and fathers leading small children by the hand while the children were holding balloons, dolls, or stuffed animals in their hands. There was a family with eight children walking towards the left where a hobbit lady and man were selling stuffed animals, and towards the right of the stuffed animal stand was a little hobbit boy eating candy while holding his mother's hand. The area was filled with music that few of the bands were playing. Towards the far right near the lake a group of children were enjoying a puppet show, and towards the far left side some were farm animals in a fenced in area including ponies, pigs, and sheep. A group of hobbits were riding on a hay filled wagon with two ponies in the front, and near the lake were a few hobbit couples admiring the water as well as a group of tweenagers splashing water on each other despite the fact that the water was too cold because it was only spring.

Frodo, eyes widened with excitement at the sight that was in front of him and tried to pull his hand free from Bilbo so he could run towards the fun actives, but Bilbo did not let go of Frodo's hand.

"Wook Unca Bibo, cakes, and pies, and toys, hoses, and sheep, puppet shows, and hay wides."

"Take it easy Frodo," said Bilbo who wasn't a bit surprised at the child's excitement. "We have plenty of time to do all these fun things."

When Bilbo, Frodo, and the dwarves entered the fair grounds, the hobbits looked at the dwarves with different expressions, some friendly others not so friendly. All of them were curious because they did not often get visitors from outside the shire.

"Ori noticed the unfriendly looks of some of the hobbits and said with annoyance in his voice, "these hobbits are sneering at us."

"I noticed that too," Nori replied. "I wonder why they are staring at us as if we are intruders, it makes me feel uncomfortable."

"Many of the hobbits feel uncomfortable when they receive visitors from outside the shire, because they want to keep to themselves and have nothing to do with the outside world," Bilbo explained to them. "Besides not all of them are unfriendly.

"Well, I don't like them staring at us," said Gloin.

Bilbo turned to Frodo who was still holding his hand and asked him, "what would you like to do first?"

"Go on a pony wide!"

"Let's take him there,"said Bilbo.

They began to walk towards the farm area. On their way there, they passed by a hobbit woman who was selling apricots that Ori bought, a few games including another bean bag tossing game, a group of hobbit children chasing each other, and a few hobbits who were sneering at them.

There was also a hobbit man named Toby Proudfoot who saw Bilbo and said to him, "It's so good to see you again. I haven't seen you in over eight months. You should come visit us again. My wife will make you the best chicken pot pie, and our children would love to hear you tell stories about elves and dwarves."

"It's good to see you too, Toby," said Bilbo, where is your family?"

"My wife and children are talking to one of her sisters." Toby gestured towards two hobbit ladies talking to each other while the children hung around their mothers."

"I see you brought some dwarves with you," Toby said. "Why don't you introduce me to them?"

"Toby, these are my friends, "Bofer, Bifer, Nori, Ori, and Gloin."

"Greetings to all of you," he said to them.

They nodded their heads in response before he caught sight of Frodo holding Bilbo's hand.

"Who is this little lad?" he asked.

"I a big wad," said Frodo who looked proudly at Toby.

"This is my nephew Frodo," Bilbo answered. "His parents are celebrating their wedding anniversary for a few days so they left him in my charge."

Toby knelt down in front of Frodo and said to him, "I have two daughters who are just about your size."

"Do they wike pony wides?" Frodo asked.

"Yes they do."

"I'm going on a pony wide, visit animaws, pway games, eat cakes, go on hay wides, and do wats of ota fun tings," Frodo said with excitement in his voice.

"We have to get going," said Bilbo before Toby stood up again. "Frodo can't wait for his pony ride. I hope you have fun today, and say hello to your family for me."

"I hope all of you have fun too," said Toby.

"Thank you Bofer," said to him. "It was nice meeting you."

The other dwarves nodded their heads in agreement.

Bilbo, Frodo and the dwarves continued to walk until they arrived at the farm area. The first group of animals they saw inside a fenced in area where ponies, one of them, a brownish white pony, was area grazing on the tall green grass towards the back, while the other one, a dark chocolate colored pony was eating a carrot out of a hobbit lady's hands. A few hobbits looked at the dwarves with unfriendly eyes while they passed by them to visit the animals behind the ponies.

"We don't need these dwarves here," one of the hobbit men," said nastily to his friends."

"Excuse me, Mrs. Burrows," Bilbo said trying to get the lady's attention.

"Yes?" she asked politely while looking expectantly at him.

"Can Frodo have a ride on one of your ponies?"

"Yes he can," she answered.

At that moment, two hobbit men arrived each holding the halter of a pony. When the ponies stopped the men lifted the children, a hobbit lad and hobbit lass off the ponies. The children ran towards their parents who stood a few feet away from Bilbo, Frodo, and the dwarves. Mrs. Burrrows led the ponies inside the fenced in area. They began to graze.

"What pony would you like to ride on," Mrs. Burrows asked Frodo with a sweet voice.

"Tat one," Frodo answered while he pointed to the dark chocolate colored pony.

Mrs. Burrows went inside the fenced in area and led the pony out. She lifted Frodo on the saddle and began to lead the pony on the fair grounds.

While Frodo was going on a pony ride, Bilbo and the dwarves were talking to each other.

"I noticed that this hobbit fair is different from ours," said Gloin "There are no axe throwing contests, objects being forged out of metal, mining contests, or stone shaping contests."

"I noticed that too," said Ori. "I also notice that this fair doesn't have half the meat that our fairs have. Many of the dwarves sell meat with herbs on them including venison, beef, ham, and roast chicken."

"Your fairs sounds interesting," said Bilbo. I would like to visit one when I go traveling again."

"Are you going to visit us at Erubor?" Gloin asked Bilbo.

"Yes, I plan on doing that someday, as well as visiting Rivendell and other places."

They continued to talk to each other until Mrs. Burrows returned with the pony. She lifted Frodo off the pony before she led the pony back inside it's pen.

"That was fun, can I wide on him again?"

"No," Mrs. Burrows answered. "The Pony needs to rest."

"Let's visit the other animals," Bilbo said Frodo while he took his hand.

The first animals they visited after Frodo's pony ride were pigs.

"Look at those pigs," Bilbo said to Frodo.

Frodo looked at the mud covered pigs, and said," Unca Frodo tese pigs wike to get aw muddy wike me? Can I go inside and pway wit them?"

"No, they might bite," Bilbo answered.

"We see wild pigs once in a while in our travels," Gloin said to Bilbo

"That one over there, looks like the pig we ate last week," Bofer said while he pointed at a very large pig that was wallowing in the mud near his home.

"And that one next to him is sleeping," said Ori. "Do you remember the time when we watched a pig race in a human village?"

The other dwarves nodded their heads.

"We were betting on pig races, and Thorin's pig out ran every other pig."

"I remembered that. I also remembered the time when Thorin fell in a mud hole and when he came out again he was covered with so much mud that he looked like a mud monster. Many of us were laughing," said Bofer.

"You were laughing the loudest," said Ori.

"I remembered that time; Thorin was so annoyed at us that he was trying to throw mud at us while he was chasing us," said Nori.

"He did get you good," Ori said to his brother while laughing at the memory. "He threw so much mud that you looked like a mud monster too."

"He pushed you in the mud hole," Nori said in response while laughing. "You looked more like a mud monster than I did."

"I wish I was there, to see it," Bilbo said while he began to laugh.

Frodo looked at them strangely because he did not know what they were talking about.

They passed by the pigs and approached the next area where sheep were being kept.

Bilbo lifted Frodo up into his arms and said to him, "You can pet the sheep. Frodo put his hand on top of one of the sheep's head that was near them and felt the soft wooly fur.

He feels so sof," said Frodo.

"That's because he has large amount of wooly fur," Bofer answered him.

"My wife used to make clothes and blankets out of sheep skin," Gloin said to the others. "It used to keep my little Gimli very warm during the winter months."

Bifer gestured to Gloin, that their mother also used to make winter clothes out of sheep skins for him and his brothers.

"I like to keep warm during the winter too," said Bilbo. "I like watching the snow fall on the ground, and children making snow hobbits and having snow ball fight, but I'm not fond of the freezing cold."

"My Gimli used to have fun playing in the snow," said Gloin. "He and his friends used to build snow forts and pretended to have snow battles."

"Let's visit the other animals," said Bilbo.

They visited the chickens, rabbits, and other animals, until they came to the last area where the cats and kittens were. They watch the kittens wrestle with each other while the cats watched them.

Frodo immediately began to play with the kittens. He dangled a toy mouse in front them swinging it back and forth on a string while two of the kittens were batting at it. When he was finished playing with them, he petted a stripped kitten, and tried to pick up a black and white kitten, but Bilbo pulled his hands away from the kitten.. The mother cat was making a soft hissing sound. It was obvious that she did not like to have anyone pick up her kittens.

"You must not pick up the kittens," Bilbo said.

"Why?" Frodo asked. The kittens looked so adorable that he wanted to cuddle them.

"The mother cat does not want them to be picked up."

"I wan tat one," said Frodo who pointed at another black and white kitten.

"No Frodo," said Bilbo.

"But he's so cute," said Frodo who was beginning to pout.

"Would you like me to give you a pony ride?" Bofer asked Frodo, trying to distract the child from the kittens and prevent him from having a temper tantrum.

"Yes! Yes!" Frodo answered excitedly while he jumped up and down.

Bilbo handed Frodo to Bofer who put him on his shoulders before they walked out of the farm animal area.

"Would you like to join a children's race?" Bilbo asked Frodo.

Frodo nodded his head.

They turned towards the right and began to walk towards the children's racing area. The Sackville Baggins and the Greenhomes saw them from a distance.

"Isn't that just like Bilbo to bring those dwarves to our fair and ruin it," Tulip said nastily. "We don't need those dwarves here."

"And we don't need that Bilbo here, either or in the shire," Lobelia said just as nastily. "We would be living in Bag end right now if Bilbo stayed away. Otho would be sitting comfortable on the bag end chair in the parlor, and my Lotho would be the envy of other hobbit children."

"I want to have a race with the other kids," Lotho said, who was standing beside her.

"Otho, let's take Lotho to the children's racing area."

Bilbo and the dwarves continued to walk towards the children's racing area passing a few game booths including a children's toy fishing game, and a few selling booths including one that where a hobbit lady was selling potted plants, and a hobbit man was cups and bowls. When they arrived at the children's racing area, they saw a group of older children lined up in a row and bent slightly forward; ready to take off.

"On your mark! Get set! Go!" yelled a hobbit man who was in charge of the races.

The children took off running some surpassing the others while the families and friends of the racing hobbit children cheered them on.

"Go Lilly! Go! Go! Go! Go Sadoc! "Go Hal! You can beat them Lilac!"

Bofer put Bilbo down on the ground.

"These children run fast," said a hobbit boy who was standing next to his mother.

"I can wun fas too," Frodo said to the older boy while he looked up at him.

"Maybe you should race," the older hobbit boy said to the toddler.

"I came here to wace and to win," said Frodo. "Aw you gonna wace too?"

"Nah," said the older hobbit boy. "I don't like to race."

"Excuse me," Bilbo said trying to get the attention of the hobbit man who was in charge of the children's races.

The hobbit man turned around and looked at them with a frown on his face. "Dwarves," he sneered quietly.

The words however were picked up by Bilbo and the others, including Gloin who started towards him, but Bofer kept him back.

"Ignore him Bofer; the last thing we need right now is a fight."

"But he said…" Gloin objected.

"If you fight him, it will spoil Frodo's chance to race with the other children," said Bofer.

"I suppose you're right," said Gloin. He reluctantly backed off.

"My nephew would like to join a race."

The hobbit man knelt down to the Frodo who was holding Bilbo's hand.

"So you like to race?" he asked kindly.

"I wike to wun," Frodo answered.

"You can join the next race with the younger children," the hobbit man said before he stood up again.

"Go Tom go! Go! Go! Go! Faster Lilac!"

"What do you say Frodo?" Bilbo prompted him.

"Tank you."

"You're welcome," said the hobbit man.

"Run! Run! Run! Go! Go! Go! Faster Hal! Faster Lilac! Come on Pearl you can win! Don't let her beat you Bert!"

The older children continued to race until Lilac stepped on the finished line.

"The winner!" a hobbit woman said while holding up Lilac's hand.

Lilac's family rushed to her and surrounded her while cheering excitedly.

"Hoorah! Hoorah!" they cheered

"You won! You won! You won!" said Lilac's older sister.

"Lilac, the faster runner in the shire!" her mother shouted while holding up Lilac's arm.

The hobbit man gave Lilac a new doll as a prize for winning the race.

"Now it is time for the younger children to race," said the hobbit man."

He began to line the younger children up. He took Frodo's hand and walked him to the line.

"You stand right here," he said to Frodo while he placed him between a hobbit girl who was his size and a bigger hobbit girl.

"And you can stand here," he said to another hobbit boy when he brought him to the far end of the line.

"Looks like everybody is ready," said the Hobbit man. "On your mark! Get…."

"Wait! Wait!" cried Otho. "My son wants to get into this race too."

He took Lotho to the starting line.

"You can stand here," he said to Lotho while he put him between Frodo and the older hobbit girl."

"Is everybody ready?" the hobbit man shouted.

"Yes!" all the children yelled.

"On your mark! Get set! Go!"

The hobbit children took off and as the families cheered the older children on they were now cheering the younger children.

"Go! Go! Go Frodo! Go Pearl! Go! Dodi! Faster Lotho! Faster!"

The younger children were racing as fast as their little legs allowed with some surpassing the others. Frodo, who was fast for his age, was catching up to Lotho. Though Lotho was four years older and twice his size he was a slow runner; by the time they were halfway through Frodo caught up to him. Lotho seeing that Frodo was running even with him and would soon pass him stuck his leg out and tripped Frodo who fell on the ground and skinned his knees. Frodo began to wail loudly while tears were running down his cheeks.

"I saw that!" the father of one of the other racing children yelled. "That big boy tripped that smaller boy!"

"I saw that too!" his wife shouted while she was holding an infant girl in her arms.

"Stop the race!" Gloin yelled while Bilbo ran towards his crying child and held him in his arms.

"It huts Unca Bibo," Frodo wailed while he rubbed his scraped knee.

"Let me look at that," the hobbit man who was in charge of the race said.

He looked at the skinned knee and said to Bilbo, "that is a nasty scrape, get that cleaned up."

Bilbo silently nodded his head at the other hobbit man while holding Frodo in his arms and trying to comfort him.

"Tat big boy twipped me!" Frodo yelled.

He did not!" Otho yelled angrily. "That brat is lying!"

"He did trip him!" Nori shouted angrily. "I saw it with my own eyes. You need to teach your child some manners!"

"I saw it too!" said another hobbit lady.

"Mind your own business!" Tulip shouted angrily at her.

My child did not trip him!" Lobelia shouted. "And even if he did, that Brandybuck brat deserved it!"

"He did not!" Gloin shouted!

"Yes he did!" Dodo shouted back. "He's a Brandybuck and he doesn't belong here."

Nori started toward him wanting punch him, but Ori held him back.

"He's not worth it."

"I saw the whole thing; Lotho tripped Frodo," the hobbit man who was in charge of the race said. "He's out of the race."

The Sackville Baggins and the Greenhomes walked away angrily.

"I wish you had never come back," Lobelia said angrily to Bilbo before she joined the others.

"Good riddance!" Bilbo shouted angrily at them before he turned back to Frodo.

"Shush! Shush! It's alright. You are going to be fine. Let's go to the lake and get your knee all cleaned up, and then you can join another race."

"No wana wace any mo," Frodo said sadly.

"Would you like me to give you another horse ride?" Bofer asked.

"Yay!" Frodo answered already forgetting his hurt.

"Let's do that after we clean his knee," Bilbo said to Lotho.

Bilbo carried Frodo in his arms while he and the dwarves walked to the lake which was close by. When they got to the lake, Bilbo dipped his handkerchief in the cold water and began to clean Frodo's knee of dirt and blood (there was very little of it). Frodo flinched when the cold water hit his skin and tried to move, but Gloin held him still.

"It's alright, Frodo," Bilbo said soothingly to him. "I'm going to clean your knee and you will feel all better."

When Bilbo finished cleaning his knee, Frodo felt much better. Frodo stood up and began to walk towards the water.

"Come on Frodo," Bilbo said to Frodo while he took his hand to lead him away from the water. "We are not going swimming today."

"Would you like me to give you another pony ride now?" Bofer asked Frodo.

Frodo nodded his head.

Bofer lifted Frodo on his shoulders and began to gallop, making Frodo laugh. He already forgot about his scraped knee.

"Fater Bofa Fater!" Frodo shouted.

They came upon a hobbit lady who was selling strawberries.

"I would like to buy some strawberries," Bilbo said to the lady.

He handed the hobbit lady some money and she handed him some strawberries. Bilbo handed two strawberries to Frodo who put them in his mouth right away. He was enjoying the juicy sweet taste of the strawberry.

"Mo Unca Bibo!"

"Here you go," Bilbo said to him while gave him another strawberry.

Frodo ate that strawberry too.

"Mo Unca Bibo!"

"No that is enough for now; I don't want to spoil your appetite for afternoon tea," said Bilbo.

"Twabewy is dewicious," Frodo said.

"Would you like to see the puppet show?" Bilbo asked Frodo.

Frodo nodded his head happily.

To Be Continued


	5. Chapter 5

A Delightful Visit From The Dwarves

Disclaimer, Author's notes and warnings: See page one.

They turned left and began to head for the puppet show. On their way they passed by a hobbit man selling stuffed animals. Frodo looked at the stuffed animals with a desire play with them.

"I wan to pway wit tese tufed animaws," Frodo said to them.

"I'll buy you one," said Bilbo.

"Let me buy the toy for Frodo," said Gloin.

"Are you sure?" Bilbo asked.

"I've grown fond of the child; it would be my pleasure."

They walked to the stuffed animal stand where Hamfast was also buying stuffed animals for his children.

"It's nice to see you here, Hamfast," Bilbo said to him. I hope you are doing fine on this cool spring day."

"My boys love stuffed animals; so my Bell and I decided to buy some."

Hamfast was glad that the stuffed animals were being sold for little money because he didn't have much money for buying toys.

While Bilbo was talking to Hamfast and his family, Gloin asked Frodo, "which stuffed animal would you like to have?"

"I would wike tat one," he answered while he pointed at a soft brown puppy with floppy ears and who had large black beads for eyes.

Gloin gave the money to the hobbit man before he picked up the stuffed puppy and gave it to Frodo.

"Put me down, Bofa," Frodo said to him.

Bofer put Frodo down on the grass and immediately ran to Bilbo who was only a few feet away still talking to the Gamgee family.

"My cousin invited us to tea last Sunday afternoon, and she made the most delicious scones, I have ever tasted. Bell said. "Well hello there," she said to Frodo while she looked down at him while smiling. "You're a fine little lad."

"This is Bilbo's nephew Frodo," said Hamfast.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Bell said to the toddler.

"Say it's a pleasure to meet you too Mrs. Gamgee," Bilbo said to Frodo.

"It a pweasa to meet you to Mrs. Gamgee," Frodo repeated. "Hewo Mita Hamfas."

"Hello Frodo," Hamfast said while he looked down at him with kind eyes; Frodo looked up at him for a second when he spotted Hamfast's two sons standing next to him also holding stuffed animals in their hands.

He walked over to them politely and said to them, "Gwoin got me a tuffed puppy."

"I got a tuffed bunny," said Halfred.

"And I go a stuffed cat," said Hamson.

Bilbo introduced Frodo to the two Gamgee children. "Frodo, these are Hamfast's children, Hamson, and Halfred."

Frodo repeated their names, "Hamson, Hafwed."

"That's right Frodo, Hamson and Halfred," Bilbo repeated.

"I wen on a pony wide," Frodo told the two other little hobbit boys."

"I wen on a pony wide too," Halfred said. "I wike pony wides."

"And I like wheel barrow races," added Hamson. I had fun riding in a wheel barrow while our cousin Nob was pushing it."

"The adult hobbits and dwarves were talking to each other at the same time the hobbit children were.

"We are having a lot of fun at the fair," said Bell. "We bought some potato seeds, and some cantaloupes, and Hamson had a lot of fun at the wheel barrow race. He and Nob won first place in the wheel barrow race. Nob Cotton and Tom Cloverleaf were ahead of everybody else, they were running evenly, but when they got to the finished line, Hamson passed the finish line first by three inches."

"What did they get for first prize?" Bofer asked.

"Hamson got a new toy, and Nob got a new wooden musical flute," said Hamfast. "Nob loves playing music and he is very good at it. He plays them at parties."

"We are going to take Frodo to see a puppet show," said Bilbo. "Would you like to join us?

"No thank you," answered Hamfast. "We promised the Cottons that we would have afternoon tea with them, before we go on a hay ride."

"It was nice seeing you again," Bilbo said while he and his group parted company from the Gamgees.

"Likewise," Hamfast said in response.

"Come along, Frodo," Bilbo said to him.

"But I wana pway with hafwed and Hamfas," the toddler protested.

"You can play with them another time," said Bilbo.

"I wana pway wit tem now," Frodo said with a pout on his face.

"We're going to take you to see a puppet show," said Bofer. "Don't you want to see a puppet show?"

At that moment Frodo forgot about his reason for pouting and his eyes lit up before he shouted, "Yay a puppet show!"

They continued on their way to the puppet show with Bofer carrying Frodo on his shoulders again. On their way, Bilbo bought some corn from a hobbit man who was selling it, and Bifer bought a few cantaloupes from a hobbit lady who was selling them a few feet away from the hobbit man who was selling corn on the cob.

After bifer bought the cantaloupe, they continued to walk to the puppet show which was only 10 feet away.

When they got to the puppet show stage they saw a large group of children ranging from two to seven sitting on the grass in rows. The children were fidgeting and chatting with each other. They were excited about the upcoming puppet show. Bofer knelt down so that Frodo could get off and Bilbo placed him next to a two year old hobbit boy who immediately began chattering with him. Bilbo and the dwarves could not understand a word the two year old was saying, but Frodo was able to.

A hobbit lady entered the stage with two white rabbit puppets in her hand. One of them wore a soft flowing pink gown and had a tiara on her head; the other wore a robe, a blue gown, and a crown. The parents and older sibblings were shushing the young children as soon as she came on stage.

"Shush, Frodo," said Bilbo "The lady is going to start the show any second now."

"You must be quiet, if you want to watch it," the father of the two year old hobbit boy said.

When the parents and older siblings quieted the small hobbit children, the hobbit lady began to speak.

"Greetings hobbit children," said the hobbit lady who was holding the puppets in her hand. "Do you like fairy tales?"

"Yes!" all the children in the audience shouted joyfully.

"Do you like rabbits?"

"Yes!" the children shouted again.

"This story is about a Rabbit Princess."

"Will she meet and marry a rabbit prince?" a little five year old hobbit girl asked.

The hobbit lady laughed. "Watch the show and you will see."

"Once upon a time a rabbit princess, who was the most beautiful female animal in the kingdom, lived in a castle with her mother the rabbit queen who loved her very much. The rabbit princess was always happy. She played in her garden everyday with other animals including a squirrel, and a raccoon. They played…"

While the hobbit children were watching the play, Gloin was looking at the other activities at the fair. When he saw to the right a game that interested him he pointed towards it and said to the other dwarves, "look over there."

The other dwarves looked in the direction that Gloin was pointing to, and saw several hobbits playing the Hammer and Bell game. A group of hobbits were trying to make the small donut shaped object ring the bell, by hitting it with a gigantic hammer, and one of the hobbit men succeeded in doing that. The dwarves were fascinated by the game, and had a desire to give it a try.

"I am going to try that, game over there," Ori said to Bilbo. "It sounds like a lot of fun."

"I am going to try that game too," said Nori while the other dwarves nodded their heads in agreement.

"Go ahead," said Bilbo. "We'll be here when you return."

"We'll probably be back before the play is over with," said Bofer.

"Have fun and let me know who wins," Bilbo said with a cheerful tone.

"The little rabbit princess was dancing for joy because she met the rabbit prince. He was the handsomest…."

The dwarves walked towards the Hammer and Bell game and when they arrived, the hobbit man who was in charge of the game looked at them expectantly.

"We would like to try this game," said Gloin.

"You can do it after he has his turn," the hobbit man said to them while another hobbit man picked up the hammer and hit it as hard as he could. The donut shaped thing went up the pole until it was a few inches below the bell.

"Now you can play," said the other hobbit man while he handed the large hammer to Nori.

Nori raised the large hammer then swung it down on the donut shaped thing so hard that it almost knocked the bell off. The hobbits looked with amazement for they have never seen anyone hit it that hard before.

"Wow!" the hobbits cheered excitedly.

"That was good," said Ori. "Now it is my turn."

Ori made the bell ring, but not as hard as Nori did.

"Watch this!" said Gloin who was next. He lifted the large hammer and swung it down on the donut shaped thing as hard as he could. The object flew high with such force that it made the bell fly off the pole and high into the air before it fell straight down again. The sight was even more amazing to the hobbits who were watching them then when Nori hit the donut shaped thing.

The hobbits began to cheer. "Wow! That is amazing! I've never seen anything like that before. That bell went all the way up to the sky."

"I won! I won!" shouted Gloin who was dancing around in joy.

"You didn't win yet," said Nori to the overconfident dwarf. "Bofer and Bifer didn't have a turn yet."

Two hobbit men (one of whom was in charge of the game) took the bell and fastened it on top of the pole again. Bofer swung the hammer at the object very hard making the object fly very hard and hit the bell. The bell shook, but did not fly off the pole. When he was finished he gave the hammer to his brother who hit the bell so hard that it flew even higher than when Gloin hit it.

The hobbits' eyes were following the bell.

"Wow! Did you see that?" one hobbit said to the others.

"That is amazing," said another hobbit. "That dwarf hit the bell even higher than the other one did."

"Ha! Ha! I beat you! I beat you!" Bifer gestured to Gloin. "I can't wait to tell Bomber about it. I finally beat you for once."

"There are other contests, and I am going to beat you in those," Gloin responded.

Despite the fact that Bifer won the game, and Bifer and Bofer were dancing around in joy like little children, they could not lower Gloin's pride even an inch.

A few minutes later the two dwarven brothers calmed down.

"I'm going to bring Bilbo here; maybe he would like to try this game."

Bofer walked back to the puppet show area and saw Bilbo standing with parents and other family members who were watching the children. The children were enjoying the show and kept their attention on it while there was a comment here and there and a bit of fidgeting especially from the younger children in the audience. Few of the youngest children even began to toddle but the parents made them sit down again. Fear was shown in their eyes while they watched the lady tell a scary part of the story.

"The wicked wolf was chasing after the rabbit princess who was running for her life in the woods."

"I hope he doesn't catch her," a little hobbit boy whispered to his sister.

"She passed by two pine trees, and a wild rose bush while shouting, "Help! Help!" She tried to outrun him, but he was catching up to her Just as he was about to catch her …."

Bilbo, who was so attentive in watching his nephew enjoying the show that he did not notice Bofer walking towards him until Bofer, who was standing next to him, touched his right shoulder which caused Bilbo to jump a little.

"I didn't notice you, Bofer; how long were you standing there?" Bilbo asked him quietly.

"Not long, only a minute." Bofer answered just as quietly.

"Frodo is really enjoying the show isn't he?" Bofer asked.

"Yes, he is really enjoying the show. This is the first time I've seen him sitting still or sitting still as one expects from a toddler for more than ten minutes. The only other time he does that was when he is eating his meals."

"Thorin said that Fili and Kili were the same way when they used to watch plays for dwarvlings."

"Did you come here to keep me company while I watch Frodo?"

"Actually, I came here to ask you if you would like to try the Hammer and Bell game. It is a lot of fun."

"Who won?" Bilbo asked."

"Bifer did; He hit the bell clear off the pole and it flew high in the sky."

"I don't think he could hit it that hard," said Bilbo.

"You could try anyway," said Bofer. "It's a fun game whether you win or lose."

"All right, I will try the game; I've wanted to play that game ever since Gloin showed it to us, but you are going to have to stay here and watch Frodo; he is much too young to be here on his own."

"Yes, I will do that; go ahead and enjoy yourself," said Bofer.

Bilbo walked over to the Hammer and Bell game, and saw a hobbit man swing the large hammer at the donut shaped object which made it fly up to three fourths under the bell. When the hobbit man was finished he handed the large hammer to Bilbo.

"Watch this," Bilbo said to the dwarves.

Bilbo, who was determined to make the object hit the bell, swung the large hammer as hard as he could on donut shaped thing; making it fly up until it was two inches under the bell.

"That was good," Gloin said to Bilbo while he patted him on his shoulder.

"I wish I could have hit it higher," said Bilbo.

"Well you almost made it said Nori. "And you did better than some of the other hobbits here."

"Well it is a lot of fun, even if I didn't ring the bell," Bilbo admitted. "Why don't we go back to the puppet show? It should be almost over by now, and there are lots of other fun things Frodo and I would like to do?"

Bilbo and the dwarves returned to the puppet show.

"The rabbit prince and rabbit princess fell in love with each other, got married and lived happily ever after. The end."

"Hoorah! Hoorah!" the hobbit children cheered while they clapped their hands. Few of the younger ones were jumping around in joy while their parents and older siblings watched them carefully making sure they didn't run off.

When the excitement ended, Bilbo took hold of Frodo's hand and led him away from the puppet show area.

"How did you enjoy the show?" Gloin asked Frodo.

"It was fun. Te was a pwety wabbit pwincess who met a handsome wabbit pwince who wescued hea fwom the mean wof….."

The toddler continued to chatter while Bilbo said to the others, "It's time for afternoon tea."

Bilbo, Frodo and the dwarves had tea with crumpets. When they were finished eating they continued to have lots of fun at the fair. They went on a hay ride, watched a hobbit man juggle fruit, joined a sack race, watched to a band playing music, and hobbit ladies showing off their pies at the pie baking contest. Bilbo bought the chocolate cake at one of the pastry stands, and to Frodo's delight gave him a slice of the cake after they ate dinner. Of course, Bilbo and the dwarves ate it too. Who couldn't resist a spongy like cake that tasted very chocolaty especially the frosting and the filling?

"I think we should go now," said Bilbo.

Later on that evening the dwarves were sitting in the parlor talking about the fun they had at the hobbit's spring fair.

"I had lots of fun at the hobbit fair," said Ori. "There were many great things in it."

"Especially the food," Nori teased. "You were eating so much food, that you were starting to look like Bombur."

"You ate as much as I did," Ori retorted. "Anyway that wasn't my favorite thing about the fair. I liked the music the best."

"I liked the hay ride, and the Hammer and Bell game," gestured Bifer.

"That's because you won the game," Bofer said.

"The hobbit fair had a lot of great things in it, and I had a lot of fun but it can't be compared to a dwarf fair," said Gloin. "There meats don't have herbs and spices on them to give them a strong taste, and there is nothing like dwarf music."

"That is true, but some of the hobbit songs have a kick to them," Ori said.

"And they are not so sleepy and dull like elvish music," Bofer added.

"I wonder what story, Bilbo is telling Frodo tonight," said Gloin.

"Why don't we go in there, and find out," said Bofer.

The five dwarves walked down the tunnel to Frodo's room to guest room to hear the story that Bilbo was telling his nephew; when they were more than halfway through, they heard some of the story that Bilbo as telling Frodo. Bilbo was telling Frodo a story to help him fall asleep, because he was still excited about the fair. Frodo was enjoying the story very much and was interrupting Bilbo every two minutes.

"The people of Lake Town decided to throw a party for us. They…"

"What did they have at the pahty? Did they have cake and cookies, and what about peasants?"

"They had fried fish, and…."

"Yuck," said Frodo.

"Sweet potatoes, and…"

"He's telling Frodo about our quest to regain Erabor," Gloin said quietly to the others.

Bilbo continued the story, not noticing the dwarves standing outside the open door and listening to the story he was telling Frodo until Bofer tapped him on his shoulder. Bilbo jumped for a second before he turned around and saw Bofer standing in front of him with the others hanging about the outskirts of the room.

"You startled me," he said to Bofer. "How long were you there listening to the story I was telling Frodo?"

"For a minute or two," answered Gloin.

"I'm surprised that I didn't hear you before; I think you are becoming hobbit like and I will have to give you hobbit names, and introduce you to hobbit society."

The dwarves laughed a little. "Just don't give us elf names," said Nori.

"Unca Bibo *yawn* is telling me *yawn* a stowy about *yawn* his quest to gain *yawn* a tweasa, said Frodo who was finally beginning to get a little sleepy.

"We like to hear you tell him more of that quest," said Ori. "You are a good story teller."

Bifer gestured that he agreed with his brother.

"Thorin decided that it was time for us to go."

"To Ewabo?" Frodo asked.

"Yes. We rode on a barge towards the mountain and…"

As the story continued, Frodo was getting more and more sleepy; by the time Bilbo got to the part where he entered Erabor. Frodo closed his eyes.

"That's it for the story tonight," he said quietly.

Frodo immediately opened his eyes, it turned out that he did not quiet fallen asleep yet.

"Can you tell me mo?" a very sleepy Frodo asked.

"No, I have told you enough tonight; you need your sleep."

"Pwease?"

"I will tell you more tomorrow. Goodnight Frodo," Bilbo said while kissed Frodo's far head.

"Goodnight Unca Bibo."

Bilbo and the dwarves were about to leave the room, before they left Frodo asked the last question of the night, "did you kiw the dwagon?"

The dwarves returned to the parlor with Bilbo to continue their conversation.

"We are going to leave tomorrow night," said Gloin. "We have our own things to attend to,"

"Primula and Drogo are also coming over tomorrow evening to pick up their son. Maybe you will meet them before you leave. They are very nice hobbits, and they love boats."

"Looks like they have something in common with you, Bofer," said Gloin while he clapped him on his right shoulder."

The next evening Bilbo, Frodo, the dwarves, and Frodo's parents were sitting around the table enjoying a supper of roast beaf and sweet potoes. Primula and Drogo arrived an hour ago and greeted their son with hugs because they missed him as much as he missed them. Bilbo had introduced them to the dwarves.

"Did you have a lot of fun riding on the boat?" Bilbo asked Drogo and Primula before he ate some sweat potatoes.

"We had a lot of fun," Primula answered. "The waters were so calm that we were able to relax in the boat." She drank some berry juice.

"And we did lots of other fun things too," added Drogo. "We visited an Inn called The Oak and Pine, and had a wonderful dinner of fish and chips."

"What kind of fish?" Gloin asked before he ate another forkfull of roast beaf.

"I'm not really sure," Drogo answered. He drank some of his berry juice.

"I really like salmon," Nori said. "There is nothing like eating salmon with onions."

"I hate onions," Ori said before he ate a piece of his carrot.

"I hate onions too," said Frodo before he ate a fork full of sweet potatoes.

"Frodo, how did you enjoy your stay at Uncle Bilbo's?" Primula asked him.

"It was a wot of fun mommy. I pwayed a wot inside and outside the house, and Unca Bibo and the dwaves pwayed wit me. We awso went to te fai wheh I went on a pony wide and hay wide, and Gwoin bought me a new toy. See?"

Frodo picked up the toy puppy he had on his lap and showed it to his parents.

"Thank you," Drogo quietly said to Gloin who was sitting next to him.

"Unca Bibo wead me a tory," Frodo continued.

"What story did he read to you?" Drogo asked.

"It was about when he twaveled wit te dwaves to get a tweasa back fwom te dwagon."

"He's very good at telling the story," Bofer added.

The hobbits and the dwarves continued to help to talk to each other until supper was finished.

The dwarves walked into the parlor talking with each other and playing with Frodo while Bilbo was talking to Primula and Drogo who were helping him clean the dishes.

"How was Frodo?" Drogo asked Bilbo while he was helping his wife dry the dishes. "Was he a good boy?"

"Well…"

"He was very mischievious, wasn't he?" Primula guessed while she was drying a cup.

"He wore us out," Bilbo answered while he was washing a plate. "He was so energetic that we could hardly keep up with him. He made our hole look like it was struck by a tornado. I wonder how you do so well with him. He never wears you out nearly so much as he has worn us out."

"He does tire us out sometimes, and he is very energetic," but not so much that we can't handle him."

"But how do you do it?"

"We put locks on all the cabinets and all the doors we want Frodo to stay away from," Drogo answered.

An hour later, the dwarves and the hobbits were saying goodbye to Bilbo and each other.

"Thank you for watching Frodo," Primula said while she hugged Bilbo."

"Come and visit us sometime," said Drogo who also hugged Bilbo. You haven't come to our simile for a long time and we miss your visits."

"I will," said Bilbo. "It was nice having you over too, and Frodo was such a delight although he kept us active."

Bilbo picked Frodo up in his arms and hugged him.

"It was good seeing you again," said Bilbo.

"I wike seeing you too," Frodo said. "Yo house is fun to pway in."

Everybody laughed.

"We had lots of fun with you too," Bofer said while he kissed Frodo on his left cheek.

"You are great company," Gloin said while he lifted Frodo out of Bilbo's arms and into his own before he put him down again. "And you are great company too," Gloin said to Bilbo while he hugged him.

"I'm glad you came," said Bilbo. "It was nice having you over."

"It was nice meeting you," Nori said to Drogo and Primula.

"We are glad to have met you too," said Drogo.

Everybody walked out the door and Bilbo walked to his chair and sat down; exhausted, but happy.

The End.


End file.
